Editing Reciprocating engine (section)

==History==
{{further information|History of the steam engine|History of the internal combustion engine}}

The reciprocating engine developed in Europe during the 18th century, first as the [[atmospheric engine]] then later as the [[steam engine]]. These were followed by the [[Stirling engine]] and [[internal combustion engine]] in the 19th century. Today the most common form of reciprocating engine is the internal combustion engine running on the combustion of [[petrol]], [[Diesel fuel|diesel]], [[liquefied petroleum gas]] (LPG) or [[compressed natural gas]] (CNG) and used to power [[motor vehicle]]s and [[engine power plant]]s.

One notable reciprocating engine from the World War II era was the 28-cylinder, {{convert|3500|hp|kW|lk=in|abbr=on}} [[Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major]] radial engine. It powered the last generation of large piston-engined planes before jet engines and turboprops took over from 1944 onward. It had a total engine capacity of {{convert|71.5|L|cuin|abbr=on}}, and a high [[power-to-weight ratio]].

The largest reciprocating engine in production at present, but not the largest ever built, is the [[Wärtsilä-Sulzer RTA96-C]]  turbocharged two-stroke diesel engine of 2006 built by [[Wärtsilä]]. It is used to power the largest modern container ships such as the [[Emma Mærsk]]. It is five stories high ({{convert|13.5|m|ft|disp=or|abbr=on}}), {{convert|27|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} long, and weighs over {{convert|2,300|metric ton|short ton + long ton|lk=on|sigfig=4}} in its largest 14 cylinders version producing more than {{cvt|84.42|MW|bhp|sigfig=6}}. Each cylinder has a capacity of {{convert|1,820|L|cuft|0|abbr=on}}, making a total capacity of {{convert|25,480|L|cuft|0|abbr=on}} for the largest versions.